A 17-year-old works as her high school’s undercover fixer, solving her classmates’ problems, although she can’t solve her own.
Two years ago, Hana Yang Lerner’s life fell apart when her father was forced by a scandal to resign from his position as a Democratic senator from Virginia. Though Hana, who has a Chinese American mom and White dad, still attends the same prestigious Washington, D.C., school, she no longer speaks to her best friend, Cuban American Luce Herrera. Her other friends no longer speak to her either—at least not in the open. Behind the scenes, Hana’s classmates hire her to make sensitive problems go away. Now, an anonymous person going by Three has hired her to fix something for Luce. But the job turns out to be about much more than Luce; it involves Luce’s jock boyfriend, Hana’s one-time friend group, and interconnected secrets that spiral out and back around again. And Hana isn’t the only one on the case: James Li, her Chinese American former childhood friend, is also investigating for their school newspaper. As the two work together, unspoken truths threaten to push them apart once again. Hana is determined to complete Three’s job, but to do so, she may have to confront mistakes she’s made and her own stalled life. This gripping mystery is deepened and complicated by explorations of Hana’s trauma and relationships. The slow burn allows room for character development that elevates the novel.
Thought-provoking high school drama with dark, serious undertones.
(Mystery. 13-18)